British champ Korhonen wins in Wales

Finland's Jukka Korhonen added victory in the WRC 3 category at Wales Rally GB this afternoon to his British Championship crown.

It was Korhonen’s first appearance in WRC 3 but as his rivals fell by the wayside, he kept out of serious trouble to take victory by 7min 38.4sec over Keith Cronin. Korhonen now hopes to be a regular face in next season’s WRC 3 campaign.

Bryan Bouffier led after the short opening leg, with Cronin more than a minute down after a puncture. However, the Frenchman retired after overshooting a corner in the second leg and when Cronin also retired after going off the road, Korhonen moved into the lead.

He survived technical troubles during the afternoon but with his car restored to full health, he was able to ease through the final two days to take victory. Cronin restarted under Rally 2 rules but had no chance of reeling in Korhonen.

Both Sebastien Chardonnet, who secured the WRC 3 title in October’s Rallye de France, and fellow regular Quentin Gilbert were entered. However, both had already started their six nominated events and were ineligible for points.

Both could, however, score in the Citroen Top Driver series, which ran in tandem with WRC 3. Gilbert claimed maximum points and a fine 16th overall, but second for Chardonnet gave him the Top Driver title.